Building Design and Construction Handbook - Merritt - Ventech!

2.14 SECTION TWO
the architect’s employees and consultants. The best talent must be secured, appropriately
organized, directed, and coordinated to see that the project receives wellintegrated
and well-directed professional service.
The objective is to produce an appropriately designed facility the client needs,
within budget, and on schedule. While the contractor has the front-line responsibility
for budgeted construction cost and schedule, the architect’s resources and the
services provided should be helpful in managing the construction process for the
benefit of the client. The architect’s management of materials and technology and
relationship with the client and contractors will account in good measure for the
success of the project.
2.11 INTERNAL RECORD KEEPING
Part of good office management is document control and record keeping. Much
information is received, disseminated, and collated in an architect’s office. Included
are project directories, contractual correspondence, client correspondence, consultant
correspondence, minutes of meetings, insurance certifications, in-progress drawings,
drawing release for owner review, and building permit and construction issues.
Also dealt with are facsimiles, e-mail, computer tapes, calculations, shop drawings,
specifications, material samples, renderings, photography, slides, field reports, specifications
addenda, contract modifications, invoices, financial statements, audit records,
and time records. In addition, there are contractor payment requests, change
orders, personnel records, client references and more. Certain clients may have
particular formats or record-keeping controls they impose on a project in addition
to the architect’s standard procedures.
A multitude of data is transferred among many parties during the progress of
the architect’s services. The data should be maintained in an organized manner for
future reference and archival purposes. The architect should establish an office
procedure for document control, record keeping, and document storage beyond the
life of the project to ensure easy retrieval. There are many computerized systems
that can aid the architect in catalog filing and information retrieval. Record keeping
can typically be subdivided into the following categories: contractual, financial,
personnel, marketing and publicity, legal, correspondence, project documentation,
drawings, shop drawings, warehousing, and archival records. These should not only
be supervised but also controlled, inasmuch as some files require limited access for
reasons of confidentiality and legalities.
2.12 CODES AND REGULATIONS
Various statutory codes, regulations, statutes, laws, and guidelines affect design and
construction of projects. In most jurisdictions, the architect and engineer are required
by law to design to applicable building codes and regulations, which vary
from one jurisdiction to another and can vary between codes. Some jurisdictions
that do not have sophisticated codes usually follow recognized national or international
codes, which should be agreed on at the onset of a project so that the
client and architect understand the rules for design and construction. All codes are
intended for the health, welfare, and safety of the public and occupants of buildings.